Sounds of the Unconsidered
after To the Rain by Ursula K Le Guin
Written by: Rebecca Smolen
soft brush on skin
frothy bubbles at glass rim
never conscious of or named
regardless still there
​
a calming tingle
beginning at skull base
down spine onto my arms
I think if the gravity of the stars
the awe of watching vast universe
go by could be a reaction
it might want to be this
I would choose to be this
​
I would want to share this feeling
if at a sight of me or hearing
my voice or in my hug could cause this
I’d travel the world to offer
my embrace to spread peace
or mere sensation of it
carbonation simmering
seafoam delivered to shore
greedy bubbles in the bath
​
the absence of sound is similar:
your breath caught at a touch
or held at the sight of snow falling
all the noise that is silenced
and cradles the weight of our heads
up against each other
the sound of our eyes clenched shut
and the sound of them opening again